JUST a day after being kicked off Strictly Come Dancing Victoria Pendleton has suffered another blow - by failing to make it onto the BBC Sports Personality of the Year shortlist.

The cycling star, who is a triple gold medalist, was excluded from the list which included Sir Chris Hoy and Bradley Wiggins, despite giving one of the best performances of her career in the year she retired from the sport.

Instead Paralympic cyclist Sarah Storey made it after she became Britain's most decorated female Paralympian, along with heptathlete Jessica Ennis, boxer Nicola Adams who became the first British woman to win boxing gold, Paralympic swimmer Ellie Simmonds and rower Katherine Grainger.

The shortlist heralds a fantastic year for British womens' sport - not a single woman made it onto last year's final shortlist.

Holding up the beacon for the men were tennis ace Andy Murray who this year won the US Open and Olympic Gold, Sir Chris Hoy who became the most decorated British Olympic athlete of all time, Bradley Wiggins who stormed to Olympic gold and won the Tour De France and athlete Mo Farah who took double gold in the 10,000m and 5,000m.

Sports Personality of the Year 2012

They were also joined by sailor Ben Ainslie who became the four-time Olympic champion, golfer Rory McIlroy who took home the Ryder Cup and the USPGA Championship by eight clear shots and paralympian David Weir who won four golds on the wheelchair track.

After a major year in British sport, the award ceremony is set to be one of the most exciting in its 59 year history.

Victoria Pendleton was not the only one to be missing off the list. There is no place on the list for cyclist Jason Kenny who won two golds at London 2012 to add to the gold and silver medal he had already clinched at the Beijing 2008 Olympics.

Cyclist Laura Trott, another double gold medalist at London 2012, was also missing.

The impressive performance of triathlete Alistair Brownlee in clinching gold at the Olympics was also not enough to get him on the list.

There is also no place for the star names of Paralympic T44 100m champion Jonnie Peacock and para-equestrian rider Sophie Christiansen whose golden hat trick at London 2012 means she now has five golds, a silver and bronze medal from three Paralympics.

BBC SPORTS PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR AWARD 2012: NOMINEES

NICOLA ADAMS

There are few more unforgettable images from the London 2012 Olympics than Adams' golden smile. The Leeds boxer had battled for years for the right to be recognised and when women's boxing was finally included in the Games she jumped at the chance, flooring Chinese world number one Ren Cancan - who had beaten her in two previous world finals - en route to a hugely popular gold medal win.

BEN AINSLIE

After winning consecutive Olympic golds in Sydney, Athens and Beijing, Ainslie was determined not to disappoint on home water. His experience paid off as he held off the improving Dane Jonas Hogh-Christensen to win gold again. To cap a stellar year for Ainslie, he also won his sixth Finn World Championships title, pipping compatriot Edward Wright in Falmouth.

JESSICA ENNIS

Ennis shrugged off the huge weight of expectation to charge to heptathlon gold in London, setting the standard with two personal bests on the opening day and ultimately having little trouble holding off silver medallist Lilli Schwarzkopf to take gold. Ennis wrapped up her victory in style on 'Super Saturday' as she was first to cross the line in the discipline's final event, the 800 metres.

MO FARAH

The 'Mo-Bot' became the celebration dance de rigueur in honour of the extraordinary Farah, who shattered the traditional African dominance of the men's long-distance events by winning Olympic gold in the men's 10,000m. Despite fears over his energy levels, Farah repeated the feat seven days later when he held off the fast-finishing Dejen Gebremeskel of Ethiopia to win his second gold.

KATHERINE GRAINGER

Few London gold medals were greeted quite so enthusiastically as the rowing one won by Grainger and partner Anna Watkins in the women's double sculls. Despite six world gold medals in her career, Grainger seemed destined to become the nearly-woman of Olympic sport after consecutive silvers in Sydney, Athens and Beijing. Grainger emphatically put an end to that on home water.

SIR CHRIS HOY

Hoy's two gold medals at the London Olympics lifted him above Sir Steve Redgrave and made him Great Britain's greatest Olympian in terms of gold medals won with a grand total of six. Hoy, who carried the flag at the opening ceremony, set a new world record in the team sprint then won the Keirin to rewrite the history books.

RORY McILROY

McIlroy firmly established himself as the best golfer in the world in 2012, claiming his second major title when he won the USPGA Championship by a record eight strokes, and playing a crucial role in Europe's extraordinary Ryder Cup victory. McIlroy finished top of both the European and US money lists, and wrapped up his season by claiming victory in the World Tour Championship in Dubai.

ANDY MURRAY

Murray went from tears to triumph in 2012 as he picked himself up from a heartbreaking Wimbledon final loss to Roger Federer to finally claim Britain's first men's grand slam singles title in 76 years with a thrilling five-set win over Novak Djokovic in the US Open. In doing so Murray showed a human side which finally won over huge swathes of the population and paved the way for a popular and lucrative future. For good measure, he won Olympic gold with a revenge victory over Federer at SW19.

ELLIE SIMMONDS

One of Britain's most recognisable Paralympians on account of her heroics in Beijing at the age of just 13, Simmonds did the business again in the pool in London with gold medal wins in the S6 disciplines of the 400m freestyle and 200m individual medley, as well as picking up a plucky silver in the 100m freestyle and a bronze in the 50m freestyle to wrap up another superb show from the teenager.

SARAH STOREY

Storey set the tone for Great Britain's golden Paralympics when she claimed the host nation's first gold medal with victory in cycling's C5 pursuit. Storey, also a double gold medallist from Beijing, would prove simply unstoppable in London as she went on to claim three more golds in the C4-5 time trial, the C5 road time trial, and the C4-5 road race respectively.

DAVID WEIR

Despite boasting six London Marathon titles and two gold medals from Beijing, Weir went into the London Paralympics still with a relatively low profile. But he emerged as arguably its brightest star, bursting down the back straight to claim three gold medals on the track in the 5000m, 1500m and 800m before completing an irresistible sweep by winning his fourth and final 2012 title in the men's marathon.

BRADLEY WIGGINS

Wiggins' remarkable year did not stop with the small matter of becoming the first British rider in history to win the Tour de France - and being feted worldwide as one of its most popular victors in the process. He got back on his bike to play a starring role in the London 2012 opening ceremony, before drawing on his remaining reserves of energy to win gold in the men's time trial.